Alex
'Alex & Sierra '''are an American indie folk/pop duo based in Orlando, Florida who are currently competing on season 3 of The X Factor USA. They are a part of the Groups catagory, mentored by Simon Cowell. The duo consists of Alex Kinsey and Sierra Deaton. Background Alex, who is from Daytona Beach, Florida, and Sierra, who is from Orlando, Florida, have been dating for over two years, but have known each other since high school. They have been performing together for a while and have posted cover versions of songs such as "I Knew You Were Trouble" by Taylor Swift and "If I Didn't Know Better" by The Civil Wars on YouTube. Alex and Sierra both auditioned for season 12 of American Idol, with Alex making it to Hollywood week and producers saying no to Sierra. Both were college students when they decided to try out for the show. Sierra has since then graduated. The X Factor Alex & Sierra auditioned in New Orleans and wowed the judges with a stripped-down version of the Britney Spears song "Toxic", resulting in them getting four yeses. They made the top 40 and got Simon Cowell as their mentor. Four Chair Challenge In this part of the competition, Alex & Sierra took on the John Travolta/Olivia Newton-John classic "You're The One That I Want" from the 1978 musical film ''Grease. The judges praised them for putting their own twist on the song. Demi Lovato told them they were one of her favorite acts, but questioned the future and their relationship, which annoyed their mentor Simon Cowell due to his support of Alex & Sierra as a couple. Despite this, they made the live shows. Live shows For the first live show, Alex whipped out his guitar for the duo's stripped-down version of the Robin Thicke hit "Blurred Lines". Kelly Rowland did like the performance but warned them not to let their performances become too corny, something Simon Cowell disagreed with. He praised Alex & Sierra on their performance, calling it "original" and "unique". It earned them a spot in the top 12. For Motown Night, they took on "I Heard It Through The Grapevine" by the great Marvin Gaye, which earned them praise. On the re-vote show. which happened due to a graphics error that nullified the votes, Alex & Sierra sang "Give Me Love" by Ed Sheeran. For '80s Night, the couple took on the Robert Palmer classic "Addicted to Love" with Alex on electric guitar. The performance earned them mixed reviews with two judges, Kelly Rowland and Demi Lovato, pointing out how uncomfortable the couple looked when not near each other(the performance featured them separated by a wall), to their mentor Simon Cowell expressing his own disappointment over how the performance went. The cristicism didn't stop voters from putting Alex & Sierra through to the next week. For British Invasion night, Alex & Sierra took on the One Direction hit "Best Song Ever", slowing down the tempo and changing the arrangement completely. The performance earned them massive applause from the audience and a standing ovation from Simon Cowell. Demi Lovato called it their best performance and even told them that she planned to download the song on iTunes. However, Sierra's vocals were criticized for not being as strong as Alex's, which hurt her feelings because she had only been singing seriously for only a year. For Big Band night, Alex & Sierra put a big band spin on the Taylor Swift hit "I Knew You Were Trouble", dediciating it to each other. The judges enjoyed the performance despite some very minor criticism from Kelly Rowland. They then went up against the other 7 acts in a face-off. For Divas/Unplugged night, the couple took on two songs. Their "Diva" song was "Say My Name" by Destiny's Child, which did make Alex & Sierra nervous because they were going to be singing the song in front of Kelly Rowland, who had been a member of Destiny's Child. That song earned them praise. Their "Unplugged" song, "Say Something" by A Great Big World and Christina Aguilera, was a risk for them because of Sierra deciding to play piano on the song. However, the performance worked for them and earned them well deserved praise by the judges. Simon Cowell, in particular, was very proud of them and called the performance his favorite of the season. He even told them that he would download the song. For the semi finals, the public chose "Little Talks" by Of Monsters and Men, which earned Alex & Sierra praise, but it was their performance of "Gravity" by Sara Bareilles that really blew everyone away, even bringing Demi Lovato to tears, and secured their place in the finals. Like "Say Something" before it, the couple's version of "Gravity" hit number 1 on iTunes. Trivia * Alex & Sierra met on a beach in 2009. * Their first date was a romantic boat tour. * Both are good at impressions. * Alex & Sierra's version of "Best Song Ever" hit the top 30 on iTunes. * Their verison of "Say Something" went to number 1 on iTunes, making them the first X Factor contestants to ever achieve that feat. Gallery 1007 xf s3 top16 904x508 alexsierra-contestant wall.jpg 13-Top13-BW-portraits-480x270 retina.jpg tumblr_mv53gnedih1qgay5wo1_500.jpg xf03_ep12_perf_alex_and_sierra_960x540_59135043577.jpg xFactor_57-AlexandSierra-white_2174.rc_.jpg R3eXg2X.jpg 07-top-6-portraits-480x270_retina.jpg 08-top-4-portraits-1170x658-480x270_retina.jpg 09-top-4-portraits-1170x658-480x270_retina.jpg 12-Top13-BW-portraits-480x270_retina.jpg Category:Groups Category:Male Contestants Category:Female Contestants Category:Season Three Category:Season Three Acts Category:The X Factor USA Category:Acts Category:Mentored by Simon Cowell